An airstrike in the northern Afghan region of Kunduz which had been ordered by a German military commander killed some 30 civilians as well as Taliban militants, the commission tasked to investigate the attack said Sunday, according to dpa. Afghan President Hamid Karzai ordered an investigation after NATO jets struck at two oil tankers that had reportedly been hijacked by the Taliban on September 4. Mohammadullah Baktasch, a member of the commission, told the German Press Agency dpa that 30 civilians had died, alongside 69 Taliban fighters. The German government initially denied that any civilians were present when the tankers were attacked. On Saturday, the German military's most senior military officer defended the order to strike the tankers, saying it had been made only after "careful evaluation of the entire situation."
